Mr. Emmanuel Kofi Tamakloe, the Municipal Director of Health Service of Ahanta West Municipal says the Municipality has not recorded any malaria related deaths in the last four years.
The feat was achieved through life-saving interventions such as early diagnosis and prompt treatment, Long Lasting Insecticidal Net (LLIN) distribution, Larval Source Management.
Other interventions included, engaging communities in health decision-making, bringing health care closer to where people lived and work through primary health care system and address factors that increased Malaria risks in the Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
The Municipal Director of Health was speaking during a durbar and donation exercise by Yinson Ghana and the West Africa Rescue Association to mark world Malaria Day in Kejebril in the Municipality.
The theme for this year’s celebration was on“Health Equity, The Cornerstone for Achieving Malaria Elimination in Ghana.”
He noted that, under the Larval Source Management (LSM), the Municipal Health Directorate (MHD) collaborated with Zoomlion Ghana Limited and mapped out and sprayed a total of 474 mosquito breeding sites and thus topped the league table among the seven implementing LSM districts in the Western Region.
The Municipal Director of Health said Kejebril was ranked the 14th epidemic Malaria community but through LMS and other Malaria intervention, the health Centre in the community now ranked 3rd best in reducing Malaria morbidity compared to the 2022 and 2023 annual cases.
“No wonder we are celebrating this year commemoration in Kejebril” he said.
He added that sustained funding, strong surveillance system and community engagement were key to the success of the ambitious target of zero Malaria.
“Together with a robust political commitment, adequate investment and the right combination of strategies, we can reach our common goal of eradicating Malaria by 2030”, he said.
Mr. Tamakloe commended some health facilities in the Municipality for their excellent performance in reducing annual Malaria morbidity and their strive in ensuring zero Malaria death in the Municipality.
He also made a call to the Chiefs to support community members who suffer from the deadly Malaria illness.
Meanwhile, the Municipality recorded 33, 065 Malaria cases out of which 512 were pregnant women and 8,053 were children under five years.
“Together we can reduce morbidity in line with the vision of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Global Malaria Community which is a world free of Malaria” he noted.
He therefore called on frontline health workers, partners, stakeholders, Chiefs, and all opinion leaders in the Municipality to help accelerate the fight against Malaria for a more equitable world.